School Reunions
by bekkers29
Summary: The Doctor and Co aren't the only ones investigating the Krillitanes, & the Doctor's world-view is turned on its ear. Canon up to School Reunion, then AU. No spoilers past S2. Xover w/ the World of Darkness & HP. 3rd in a series of crossover fics. Dr/Rose
1. Chapter 1

Dun, dun, dun... now is the time for disclaimers! As I am not Russell T Davies, JK Rowling, or gainfully employed by White Wolf Publishing, in no way do I own Doctor Who, Harry Potter, or the World of Darkness. I just like to play in their sandboxes for my own entertainment (and hopefully for others' entertainment as well).

...

The only sound in the room came from the soft strumming of an acoustic guitar. An attractive woman with short strawberry blonde hair played it absently as she watched another woman, her body practically vibrating with tension, staring out the window.

"That's what I was afraid of. The school's just gone into lockdown," Rachel Snape observed disgustedly, tossing a pair of omnoculars onto the sofa beside her. "It wasn't supposed to happen yet. We should have had time for our reinforcements to arrive!"

The strumming faltered for a moment, then resumed, accompanied by a derisive American voice. "It's gotta be that idiot - waltzing in there like he was James Bond, wearin' high-tops with a suit, an' all. I swear, that really _is_ weird enough for him to be a wizard. Are we _sure_ he isn't?"

"Yes, Venus, we're sure. You know that Ami would've gotten the magic vibe if he was," Rachel replied, waving a hand in the direction of the room's other occupant, a middle-aged, salt and pepper haired Chinese woman who nodded absently while she folded clothes. "And besides," Rachel continued, putting her long black hair up in a ponytail, "his wardrobe seems more geek chic than wizard to me."

Rachel quickly scribbled a note and folded it into a paper airplane. Tossing a handful of floo powder into the fireplace, she launched the airplane and called out, "Hogwarts." After the note vanished, she spun around.

"Well, we don't have a choice now; we'll have to improvise. Grab weapons, guys. We go in," Rachel ordered, hefting and twirling her favorite sword. "Oh, and Venus, no guns." She rolled her eyes at the disgusted grunt she received in reply, but was satisfied to hear Venus drop the shotgun.

"Just 'cause I like to keep my options open," Venus muttered, her voice sounding very like Jayne Cobb's for a moment. "Couple of axes okay with you, boss?" she asked in her usual northern Californian accent.

"Yes, that's fine. Honestly though, trying to take a gun into a school? I don't think we want to worry about what could happen if a shot went wild, or the noise attracting half the police in the city." Rachel had a good deal more to say about endangering children, but knew that Venus would just tune her out, so she let it go, and swiped angrily at the tears that formed as she imagined her own kids in the sort of danger that the children just across the street were in.

Ignoring the debate, Ami sheathed her own sword into the scabbard on her back and called into the next room, "Jasmine honey, we're taking care of the school now. We'll be back soon."

Almost immediately, a young girl of twelve or thirteen scurried into the room and wrapped her arms tightly around her mother's waist. "Be careful, mom. And Venus, did I hear you get reminded that there are kids in there? Try not to blow it up," Jasmine said with a grin.

"I'll do my best, Jazz," Venus drawled, ruffling the girl's hair before she returned to strapping her axes to her thighs. "I saw you the other day with the nocs, by the way. Checkin' someone out? That why you're all concerned? Does widdle Jasmine have a crush?"

Jasmine just glared and gave Venus a two-fingered salute.

Venus just grinned, but Ami said, "Jasmine, do try to be a bit more mature than your Auntie Venus; you know it's not that difficult."

"Hey!" Venus cried, affronted.

Jasmine smiled beatifically and kissed her mother's cheek. Once her mother's back was turned, though, she stuck her tongue out at Venus then flounced out of the room.

"I think that's enough. Let's head out." Rachel opened the door and led the party toward the school. Not one of them noticed the young man sulking in a car beside a little robot dog.

"We need to distract them from the children as quickly as possible, correct?" Ami asked as they approached the doors.

"Yes, of course we do. Why…"

But Rachel never got the chance to finish her sentence, for Venus had heard the unspoken request in Ami's query. A grin split her face as one of her axes arced toward the door, which gave way with an incredible racket. "Thoughtful of the architect to design such noisy, easily destroyed doors, huh?"

After clearing away the glass shards as loudly as she could, Venus entered the building with a spring in her step. "Ah, making it up as we go along. We may be in _your_ personal hell, Rachel, but this is what _I _call fun!"

As Rachel and Ami followed more cautiously down the hall, one young boy ran down a nearby staircase and through the shattered door. His cry for help went unnoticed by the women charging into battle, but was acknowledged by the man who'd run from the car at the sound of breaking glass.


	2. Chapter 2

A series of shrieks sounded from ahead of them and the three women drew together, forming a loose triangle.

"Remember," Rachel said, her voice beginning to change pitch, "All the kids will be in a hypnotic state by now. And I'm not interested in protecting the jackass that brought this down on our heads. Don't worry about the Veil."

And so, the Krillitanes were quite startled, upon rounding the corner, to be met by three gigantic, snarling, armed creatures, as they'd never seen a Crinos Garou or Bastet.

They hesitated for only a few moments, but that was more than their opponents needed. In a matter of seconds, most of them were in pieces. Soon Finch and one other remained, and they could only blink in horror – their opponents had been a blur, they'd moved so quickly. Terrified that these creatures, which appeared to have power over time, were in service to the Doctor, the remaining Krillitanes turned to fly away. But as Finch finally dropped his illusion, two blades sliced through his wings. As he turned back with a shriek, he saw that his compatriot had already been gutted like a fish. And the last thing he saw was a huge, open mouth descending toward his head.

* * *

"It's got to be children," the Doctor was telling Rose and Sarah Jane, deeply disturbed by the Krillitanes' plans. "The God-maker needs imagination to crack it. They're not just using the children's brains to break the code. They're using their souls."

The sound of shattering glass split the silence that followed the Doctor's words. It was followed shortly by the Krillitanes' shrieking, then something that sounded like the yowl of a big cat and a wolf's howl. Not missing a beat, the Doctor and Rose caught each other's eye, grinned and took off running, with Sarah Jane only a step behind.

The shrieking lasted less than half a minute, and as the school went silent, the Doctor, Rose and Sarah Jane slowed, and then stopped.

"This way, I think," the Doctor whispered after a few moments, and took a few steps, but then stopped again abruptly and looked to his left. "K-9?"

"Affirmative master," intoned K-9 as he and Mickey came into view. "I am detecting three life forms approximately eighty meters down this corridor."

"Good boy," the Doctor mumbled distractedly as he began to move soundlessly, Rose's hand subconsciously finding his as they walked. A few moments later, as an American voice drifted down the corridor, he glanced back toward the others, pressing a finger to his lips, and gripped Rose's hand more tightly as they crept quietly, listening intently.

* * *

"Gross, Venus. You don't know where that thing had been," Rachel commented, stepping around entrails as she cleaned her sword.

"Didn't eat it, did I? Spat it out. Gross is right, by the way." Venus laughed as she wiped her mouth with a cloth. "And hey, why'd we need a plan anyway? That was hella easy. What the hell _were _those things? Didn't even _move_ fast."

"Venus is right. That was hardly what I was expecting," Ami commented in her soft voice. "What sort of wyrm-creature seems surprised by the appearance of Garou or Bastet?"

The Doctor, Rose, and the others, meanwhile, gaped unnoticed at the scene before them, unsure whether to be more disturbed by the carnage itself, or by the three American women calmly having a chat in the middle of the grisly scene while they cleaned their weapons.

"Maybe they thought your spots were pretty," Venus responded, a smirk on her perfect face. "They were distracted by the cute kitty."

Ami rolled her eyes. "More likely _you _were what startled them. It's not every day you see a Crinos Garou that looks like a big Chihuahua."

"I'm _so _gonna kill whoever started that. Just 'cause I don't have hair doesn't mean I look like a…" Venus trailed off, finally noticing their gaping spectators. "Hey, what do you know; it's the idiot, and he brought _friends_."

Unsurprisingly, the Doctor found his tongue first, though an odd expression flit across his face before he spoke. "Mickey, I see your reputation precedes you."

"Who was talking about him, dumbass?" she retorted. But then she looked at the _him_ in question and raised one tattooed eyebrow in appreciation.

"Oh I see. My mistake," Venus said cheekily. "Hey there cutie."

"Down girl," Ami warned. At Venus' glare, she amended, "At least lay off the flirting until after you clean up. I believe blood spatter tends to be a turn-off. Rachel?" She paused, then looked around. "Oh, she must have gone to free the children. Don't suppose you lot want to stick around for monster cleanup, what with this being your fault and all."

At first, the Doctor could manage only an affronted, "What?" But he soon snapped out of it. "I beg your pardon? My fault? I don't seem to recall phoning up the Krillitanes and saying, 'Hello, how've you been? Fancy coming to Earth and eating some locals?' And swords! What's with swords? Who uses swords in 2006?"

"Actually," Rose interjected, "You fought the Sycorax leader with a sword just this Christmas."

"Well yeah," he admitted, drawing the word out so that it seemed to have several syllables. "But that's, well," he paused, "actually a very good point. Oooh, did I start a trend? Fight aliens with swords, is it? Because it's not generally considered a good method, though clearly…effective…in this case."

"Aliens?" asked Venus sharply. "As in…these were aliens? Dude, you _know_ this means that we all owe Sev five quid. He s_aid _it wasn't a hoax, that _rat bastard_." Inexplicably, she affected a Boston accent for the last two words, then continued normally. "So, these weren't fomori or banes at all, then, but aliens. Huh, is that maybe why they were so easy to take out? I'm Venus, by the way. That's Ami and like she said, Rachel scampered off to…" she trailed off as all the power to the school shut down. "Do that, actually."

"Don't suppose you've got a cover story prepared?" Ami asked as scuffing sounds began to filter down from upstairs.

The Doctor was still eying Venus strangely, but he appeared to overcome his discomfort in a few moments. "Right then, first things first. I'm the Doctor, this is Rose, Sarah Jane, K-9, and, uh, that's Mickey. Now, can we get back to the part where you think this is _my_ fault?"

"Well," Ami replied, "You breezed in here, apparently without a plan, unless that attempt at undercover _was _your plan, and…"

"What was wrong with our cover?" Rose cut in, defending the Doctor. "Got us in, didn't it?"

"Dude, I've seen _Bond_ suck less at undercover," Venus stated. "And Austin Powers sucked only a _little _harder at it. Besides, our in was better. Ami lives just across the street and her daughter's the same age as the kids here. We came in for a couple of meetings with Headmaster Sociopath; he's the one missing his head, and said we were thinking of having Jasmine transfer here. By the way Ami, why don't you find an actual _guy_ to pretend to be your partner, I _hate_ playing gay."

"Yeah, well, I'm sorry you make such a good stereotype when you lose the wig," Ami replied, tugging on said wig.

"Whatever," Venus muttered, batting away Ami's hand, uninterested in the excuses.

"At any rate," Ami began, picking up the story. "When we toured the school, it became clear that something was very wrong. And since Finch suggested more than once that we should try the chips, we took a few with us and ran tests. They were inconclusive, but that oil is bizarre stuff. Actually, now that we know it's alien, the test results make a lot more sense. We also caught a few glimpses of wings and scales, but couldn't tell if their human appearance was just an illusion or an actual transformation. And we'd assumed they'd be tough to kill, so I called in Rachel, and we were waiting for a couple more reinforcements when you showed up."

"Speak of the devil," Venus said, as Severus Snape strode purposely toward them. "Got your wife's message okay then? She's just upstairs getting the children together. Don't suppose you could make this mess go poof before a couple hundred kids get traumatized by it? Or would it be too out of character for you to _spare _kids trauma?"

Severus narrowed his eyes at her, but merely pointed his wand. "Reducto!" reduced the remains to ash, and after a quick "Scourgify!" even that vanished.

"Sev, don't suppose you could spare a couple more cleaning spells? You know, over our way?"

A couple flicks of the wand later, Venus and Ami were spotless as well.

"Cheers, mate," Venus said in a passable British accent as Ami's mobile phone began to ring.

Ami glanced at the ID and answered, "Yes Rachel… Yes, it's safe to bring the kids out now. Severus showed up and cleaned up for us… Yep, bye."

Meanwhile, a whispered conversation was taking place.

"Magic's real! Why didn't you tell me magic's real?" Rose hissed.

"Because it isn't. Not here anyway. That's not how humans…wait, did she say Severus? And those spells, those were right out of…" The Doctor trailed off, looking stunned, but then Ami hung up the phone, and he spoke aloud. "Severus? Severus _Snape_? JK Rowling was writing non-fiction?" he asked incredulously.

Ami raised an eyebrow, but then shrugged. "Just the first four actually. The last three had to be largely fictionalized. Why do you think the first four came out so quickly and the others took forever? Well, are taking forever I should say. She hasn't even finished the last one yet."

The look Venus sent Ami then said, quite clearly, 'You've lost your mind.' Out loud, she simply said, "Um, why are you telling them that stuff?"

"What? Severus is going to Obliviate them anyway. It hardly matters," Ami said with a shrug.

"You sure about that, genius?" Venus scoffed. "You think Obliviate even _works _on aliens?"

To the Doctor, Venus added, "So, does that second heart come in handy for anything? Or is it just for show?"

"Whoa, how'd you do that then?" Mickey asked.

"Oh, you're good," the Doctor declared, grinning.

"X-ray vision, baby," Venus replied, waggling her eyebrows at Mickey. "And you have no idea," she added to the Doctor.

"Oh, you'd be surprised," the Doctor muttered.

"She's a bit like Captain Jack, eh Doctor? Except that she doesn't like girls," Rose whispered, her tongue poking out between her teeth.

Ami sighed in annoyance and cut into the conversation. "So what brings you to Earth? I'll assume it's not just sightseeing. If you were trying to stop those things from using the children as sentient computers and fought those creatures from last Christmas, presumably that would make you allies of some sort."

There was a break in the conversation as the school kids marched double file through the hall. Rachel, who was at the tail end, paused to press a kiss to her husband's lips, and then turned to the Doctor. "You're the only surviving faculty member of this school. Come up with something to tell the parents. And since it's really _your _fault that the staff is dead, make the story very, _very_ good."

She stalked off, her husband and Sarah Jane following close behind.

The Doctor, for his part, looked as though he was going to be ill.

Rose, however, looked angry. "Still don't know what you lot are blaming us for. 'S not like you couldn't have spoken to us, and communicated that you had a plan. 'S hardly our fault that your lot just stood back and watched it all go wrong, is it?"

"Don't Rose," the Doctor said, sounding resigned. "How were they to know that we were trustworthy? Besides, she's right, isn't she? If I hadn't been so arrogant, ordered Finch to stop what he was doing or reap the consequences…" he paused and scrubbed his hands over his face, and then through his hair, "All those teachers would still be alive if I'd just…"

"Man, don't beat your self up so damn much," Venus said, looking ashamed. "I'm sorry we all came down on you like this. I mean really, it's _way _fair to say that there's plenty blame to go around. Rachel, for one, just cannot deal with unknown variables that screw up her meticulous little plans. I've been tellin' her for years that they have pills to deal with OCD, but whatever. And that just now, the barking out orders and expecting to be obeyed without question, well she really didn't need to pick _that_ personality trait up from her husband. I wouldn't want to be one of their kids, that's for damn sure. Growin' up at Hogwarts, though, has _got_ to rock pretty hardcore."

"You're really telling us that Harry Potter's real, and that _that _was Severus Snape? Married, and with kids, and…and…" The Doctor hesitated, wanting to say 'alive,' but knowing that the final book had yet to be published. Fiction or not, he didn't want to spoil the story for the others.

"Yeah, well, you heard Ami," Venus shrugged. "The last three had to be partly made up. We didn't even get to be in 'em. I still don't get why she couldn't of just made us witches."

Ami sighed and rolled her eyes. "Yes, that's because you were in the States, making bad choices, when we were having meetings with Jo."

All Venus' confidence and bravado dried up in the blink of an eye; she suddenly looked like a small child who'd just been slapped by her mother. Her voice, when she spoke, was small and hurt, with the hoarseness of unshed tears. "If you wanted to get rid of me, there was a less shitty way to do it."

As Venus stormed off, shoulders hunched, Ami bowed her head, regretting her careless words.

Rose shot Ami a bit of a dirty look, squeezed the Doctor's hand and cocked her head toward Venus' rapidly departing form. The Doctor nodded, and Rose went after her. Mickey, unsurprisingly, followed after Rose.


	3. Chapter 3

"I'm sure she'll forgive you," the Doctor offered. "The two of you seem close.

Ami sighed and nodded. "We are. I can't believe I did that to her. I love her like she was one of my own kids; she just sometimes makes me crazy."

"Yes, well, children will do that to you from time to time. How many have you got?"

"Three. Jasmine's thirteen, and waiting for us at home. Then there's Lydia, seventeen, and Luke, who's eleven. They're both at Hogwarts this year. Their only year together at school," she said, a bit sadly.

"And their father?"

"My Lucas," she breathed with a tiny, wistful smile. She closed her eyes, as if to ward off the pain, and flatly stated, "He died almost nine years now, in the battle at Hogwarts."

"I'm so sorry," the Doctor declared, understanding her pain all too well.

"Thank you. I'd say that it's okay, but I've never been much of a liar. And I've had no end of grief from my people for that – a _cat_ who's honest," she gasped, feigning shock. Her wry grin disappeared as quickly as it had come. "I still feel as though half of me has been ripped away, you know? But I'm surviving."

"I know a little about surviving. Bit different from living," the Doctor observed, leaning his shoulder against the wall.

Ami nodded, the despair showing for a moment before she shoved it away. "I know. I'll keep going as long as the children need me, but I'm afraid to face the day when they don't."

"You don't think you'll fall in love again?" the Doctor asked, thinking of Jackie. However many men Rose's mum dated, he doubted she'd ever really gotten over losing Pete either.

"I doubt it. It wouldn't be the same if I did, I know that. The love of your life, that only happens once. You have to grab on to that and hold on for dear life. You can't know how much time you've got together."

The Doctor thought of Rose as he nodded at Ami's statement. In all his long life, he had never known anyone like Rose and knew he never would again. But he didn't know if he was brave enough to really let her in, despite the glimpse he'd once had of their future. He was so afraid, more so than when he'd ended the Time War – at least then he had thought he'd die with them. He was terrified to outlive Rose, afraid that he'd just give up, as Ami clearly feared she would one day soon. He wondered what he'd do. Would he refuse to regenerate the next time he lay dying? Would he even find it in his hearts to care about the fate of the universe when she was gone?

"Do you want to talk about it?" Ami asked gently, when he'd been silent for some time. "I'm a good listener and I won't judge."

"Later. Later I might actually take you up on that, but for now our cover story." In an instant, his forced the pensive mood away, and called up a manic grin that _nearly_ reached his eyes. "It seems there was a terrible gas leak in the kitchens. The kids were gotten out safely, but the other teachers were still inside, checking for stragglers. K-9, think you can explode the Krillitane oil? That is a substance no one should get their hands on."

"Affirmative, master," K-9 intoned with a wag of his tail.

Ami chuckled. "You have just made yourself Venus' hero. Seriously, though, I agree. An explosion's probably the only thing for the situation. All that computer equipment should be destroyed. My daughter will be upset, though. She literally asked Venus not to blow up the school."

"Well," he offered, beginning to enjoy the banter, "You can tell her honestly that Venus didn't blow it up. Little robot dog did it. Now forgive me, this is going to sound terribly…well, presumptuous, and probably rude."

She looked amused. "What?"

He thought for a moment, but there was simply no way to ask that wasn't rude. "Yes, well, you, Venus and Rachel…what _are _you?"

She still looked amused, at least. "Huh. Yeah, a little rude. Though _blunt_ works there as well."

"Sorry, it's just, you're clearly not wizards, and look at me, using wizards in a sentence like it's normal. So, you're clearly not…that, and you didn't realize aliens existed, but I distinctly heard, well overheard, well eavesdropped." He flashed a nervous grin, and then plunged ahead. "Anyway, Venus called you a cute kitty and you called her, what was it? You called her a Crinos Garou, and then a big Chihuahua. _That_ bit I just do not get."

"It's a weird visual, isn't it? Venus has an unusual birth defect. She has no body hair whatsoever. She's the only person I've ever known who wears fake eyelashes because she _needs_ them to protect her eyes. As a child, she actually wore goggles to keep stuff out of them. As for what we are, Rachel and Venus are both Garou and I'm Bastet. We're shapeshifters. They're wolves; I'm a leopard."

"This must be the most bizarre day of my life. And _that _is saying something. You're telling me that you're shapshifters, but you're from…here."

"Well, California actually. Venus and I are from the Bay area and Rachel's from LA. And yes, I know you meant Earth. You don't know much about this planet, do you?"

"I know everything!" was the indignant, and slightly squeaky, reply. "Well, I thought I did anyway."

"Well, the Garou, the Bastet, and the other changing breeds, we've been here as long as humans, some of us longer if you believe the stories. Homo erectus had barely been supplanted by Homo sapiens when our histories began. Our people are guardians, eyes, warriors, the memory of Gaia. I see from the look that you've heard the word before; the New Agers do love that one. But Gaia is the Earth's true name, her spirit if you will. And…"

She paused and seemed to be listening to something as her eyes grew distant. When she spoke again, it was as though she'd gone into a trance. "Doctor, last of the ancient order of the Lords of Time, your legend is old as the universe itself. Surrounded by friends, and yet so alone. So many faces you have worn, and yet the same man have you been. Over and over, through all of Gaia's history, protecting above all else this one small world and her people, for you are drawn here, by an ancient and powerful intuition…" Ami shook her head and stopped speaking.

"No, don't stop. What were you going to say? What intuition? Tell me!" he shouted.

"I'm sorry," she offered a bit lamely. "Sometimes an Ancestor hijacks me. That was the seer."

"But why'd she stop?" he asked, not really believing what she was telling him, but certain somehow that what he'd just seen was real.

"He, actually, and I don't know. Maybe he realized it wasn't the right time for you to know. Seers can be obnoxious like that, only telling you what you need to know," Ami explained.

"But I already knew all that stuff about me," the Doctor almost, but not quite, whined.

"Yes, well, I didn't. Maybe the message was about you, but not only _for_ you. My Ancestors can talk to me in my head; if it were only for me, he'd have spoken to me only. And do you actually believe a word of what I'm saying to you?" she finished wryly.

"Not entirely, no," the Doctor replied uncomfortably.

"Well, I suppose I'll have to prove what I can, and convince you of what I can't. I love a challenge," Ami replied, the ghost of a twinkle in her eye.

A low whirring sound reminded them that K-9 was still with them. "Master, my laser is fully charged."

"Right, then," the Doctor acknowledged. "Shall we continue this conversation at your flat?"

* * *

Even though Rose ran to catch up to Venus, the woman had already disappeared into a flat by the time Rose crossed the street. And Mickey caught up with her, breathing only a bit heavy, just after Rose rang the doorbell.

A young girl cracked open the door and warily asked, "May I help you?"

"Yes, thanks. Are you Jasmine? We were helping your mum and her friends over at the school. I think your mum's almost done, but Venus got upset and ran off. I just wanted to find out if she was okay."

Jasmine stared at them for a bit; Rose thought the girl was about to tell them to shove off, but then she opened the door properly and stepped back. "She went out back. She'll probably be in the hot tub. That's where she usually winds up after a fight," she told them, pointing toward the back door. Then she looked out the front door as Rose and Mickey walked past her.

"Uncle Sev came!" she cried and tore off toward the school. Rose and Mickey watched, bemused, as the girl raced toward the unsuspecting form of Severus Snape. Just before Jasmine reached him, Rose gave the front door an almost violent shove, and it slammed shut.

"What's that about? I wanted to see that," Mickey complained, opening the door back up. "Aw, it's no good, we missed it. She's just talking to him now."

"Good. I'm not sure I could've taken the shock of seein' Severus Snape play with a kid," Rose replied with a shudder.

"You heard Venus, though. He's _got _kids. He'd better be okay playin' with 'em. Having met his wife, I'm not sure I like his chances if he crossed her," Mickey pointed out with a grin.

"Yeah, and it's bad enough just knowing. I can't bear to see it as well. Now come on if you're comin'. Let's see if Venus is alright."


	4. Chapter 4

The Doctor and Ami walked in comfortable silence until they exited the school. As his gaze was drawn to the children milling about, he decided to ask another (possibly rude) question.

"Your daughter Jasmine, is she a Squib then, or like you?"

If she thought it an impertinent question, she gave no sign of it. "Neither, actually. She's, well, she definitely has magic, but she can't use a wand."

"No? Why not?" the Doctor asked, intrigued.

"Well, I took her to get one when she turned eleven, but when she tried one out, it exploded. And I mean _exploded_. Ollivander was able to magic all the pieces out of her body, and I healed her immediately, but she wouldn't go near another one, rather understandably I'd say. And it's a good thing that Lydia isn't allowed to use magic away from school, because Jasmine had a panic attack when Lydia took it out of her trunk. I've been trying to work with her on the fear, but I haven't been able to make much progress." Ami paused, brooding over what had happened to her baby girl, and her own inability to make it alright.

"Anyway, right after the incident at Ollivander's, I spoke to Draco. He caught a lot of flak he didn't deserve in the later books, by the way. He switched sides during his fifth year. But, as I was saying, the same thing had happened with his and his wife Darcy's first child and they were educating her at home. They s…" Ami trailed off and looked at the Doctor in alarm. "Why am I telling you this?"

The Doctor shrugged, idly wondering why more people didn't ask him that very question. "Maybe you needed to talk to someone outside the situation. But you seem more than concerned; you're afraid. What's wrong? What have you found out?"

"I…" Ami trailed off, gathered her thoughts, and began again. "The wizarding world is changing again. It's not just my daughter and Draco's. But all the parents do have something in common. Either one is a shapeshifter and the other wizard, or both are wizards _and _kin to shapeshifters."

"So, basically what you're saying is that all the children who are, well, different, have a shapeshifting as well as a wizarding heritage," the Doctor thought aloud, raking his hands through his hair, willing his mind to make the connection. "Yes! Would I be correct in assuming that this sort of pairing has been uncommon until quite recently?"

"Yes to both," Ami stated, trying to hold down the hope that this man, alien, whatever, could help them. Just because he seemed to be figuring it out in seconds, while it had taken them years to do the same... Well, it didn't mean that he'd be able to help them.

"Well, that certainly sounds like evolution to me. I could run, oh, all manner of tests to verify the hypothesis, but if I'm right, that's not what you need just now. You already suspect that they're evolving into a new species, don't you?"

"Yes, we do. For one thing, every one of these children has been born a metamorphmage. And there's a lot of fear, largely whispered and hinted at for the moment, coming out of the wizarding world, and far worse coming from the Garou. Basically, think X-Men. We're afraid we may all have to go into hiding to protect our families."

Ami glanced over at Rachel, who stood with her back to Severus, gripping his hands in her own. Experience told Ami that Severus' presence was the only thing that kept Rachel standing; she never did well when children were in danger – call it fallout from the war. "Forget what Venus said about Rachel; _this _is the real reason that she's so on edge. Severus and Rachel's youngest son is a metamorphmage. They're talking about leaving Hogwarts before he turns eleven, and leaving the wizarding world altogether if things don't improve."

The Doctor remained uncharacteristically silent, feeling certain that there was more to the story, and that if he spoke, Ami might never finish it.

"If the Garou decide our children are abominations, though, and yes, that's the word being bandied about in some circles, I'm not sure where we'll be able to hide." She scrubbed her hands over her face and exhaled loudly. "I suppose we'll burn that bridge when we come to it."

What a peculiar statement, the Doctor thought. "Sorry, don't you mean _cross_ that bridge?"

Ami looked at the Doctor blankly for a moment, and then smiled weakly. "Sorry, Buffy quote. Live in a house full of _rabid_ fans, you eventually pick up some of the lingo. Of course, Venus was more into Firefly, but I suspect that's because she drools all over Adam Baldwin. There it is again! Every time I mention Venus you get this look for a moment, like…remembering."

The Doctor frantically searched his mind for an excuse, but the sudden light in Ami's eyes told him that nothing would save him.

"Right, time traveler," she said slowly. "You've met her already - your past, her future."

The Doctor blew out a sigh of relief. She hadn't guessed, after all.

"I _knew_ I knew that look," she continued, ruining the Doctor's day. "It's the 'I nailed Venus Collins' look."

"Oi! _Now _who's rude?" he barked out, angry as well as embarrassed that his one, his _only_, indiscretion in the whole of his travels, was being unearthed for another's amusement. One moment's weakness, brought on by the despair and anguish of the Time War, of Rose saying no when he first asked her to come with him. Of course, it was also what put him back on the path to her – what led him to go back and ask her a second time. The Doctor put it out of his head, focusing instead on the here and now.

Ami smiled weakly. "I'm sorry. And again, I'm sorry, but it did not slip by undetected that you said rude, not _wrong_. And as long as I'm being rude, I may as well say that you _had_ to be in a different body at the time. Because right now, Doctor, you are _soooooo_ very far from her type."

Indignation and offense warred on the Doctor's face; indignation won. He was, after all, just a teensy bit vain this regeneration. "What's wrong with me? I like this body."

"That's understandable; it's quite adorable. But frankly," she paused, raising a hand and ticking off fingers. "You're too pretty, too skinny, you're far too talkative…etc, etc. Your pal Mickey's a good example, actually, to illustrate a point. Venus is just having a little flirty fun with him, but nothing will come of it. He seems, hmm, too well-adjusted to hold her attention. She tends to gravitate toward angry and intense men. I still hope that she'll get past said tendency, but I've known her for almost twenty years now, so I have my doubts that it'll change."

Well, the Doctor thought miserably, that certainly explained things. "Huh, I s'pose I really _was_ her type. How is it that you're taking all of this in stride?" the Doctor asked, still undecided whether to be impressed or afraid that the day's events hadn't fazed the woman who stood opposite him.

"Oh please," Ami drawled. "I had weirder days doing field work, back when I was still a working anthropologist."

And the light bulb clicked on. "Ami _Chan_! I knew you looked familiar. I've read your ethnographies. They're brilliant! You have an amazing grasp of people and culture."

"I'd better. It _is _my job. I do still teach part-time," she replied with a shrug, but her blush belied her unaffected manner. "Have your foot in as many different worlds as I do, you get to really understand what makes us all the same, as well as what makes us unique. I suppose that's _exponentially_ true for you."

The Doctor's reply was swallowed by a colossal explosion.

* * *

Rose and Mickey found Venus lounging, as expected, in a large hot tub. She was reclining with her eyes closed, but still managed to look tense. Her hair was pinned up, and Rose wondered about that, as she had distinctly heard Ami say it was a wig.

"Venus?" Rose asked quietly to announce their presence. "You alright?"

"Peachy with a side of keen," she replied, then took a deep breath and opened her eyes. "There's extra bathing suits in that room over there, if you wanna join me for a soak. And there's a bathroom just across the hallway to change in."

"Yeah, alright," Mickey said before Rose could respond. "Rose, you in?" He turned an expectant gaze on her, as though daring her to be a spoilsport.

"Sure, why not," Rose muttered at last, not feeling terribly excited about being so undressed so close to Mickey. All the things she'd said to him at Christmas, and Rose still wasn't sure if Mickey had really gotten the message that they were over. Of course, she knew, she _really _knew, she could be the Queen of mixed signals. Seemed only fair, she thought as Mickey opened the door to the room Venus had indicated, since she was traveling with the King of them.

They took turns changing in the bathroom. As she changed, Rose felt an odd mixture of self-consciousness and relief; none of the one-pieces had fit her properly, but the halter and boy short combo she found fit her nicely and had a matching sarong. By the time Rose got outside, Mickey and Venus were laughing like old friends. Maybe Mickey really did understand that they were over, Rose thought with relief. And the pang she felt as she watched Mickey chat up another girl felt more like nostalgia than jealousy.

Rose noted the large collection of flip flops beside the hot tub and was about to remove her sarong when she both heard and _felt_ a huge explosion. Barely a second later, her feet were in a pair of flip flops and she was running back toward the school, hoping that the Doctor hadn't been hurt, and also grateful that the bathing suit top she'd chosen was decently supportive.

She found him trying to steer clear of a shouting match between Ami and Rachel. Rachel seemed to think the explosion should have been cleared with her; Ami was saying that she'd been doing this sort of thing while Rachel was still in diapers, and would appreciate a little trust.

As the shouting match escalated, the Doctor inched his way toward Severus Snape. "Do you think we'll need to put a stop to this before it gets, well, uglier?"

Severus shook his head. "No, Ami's simply allowing Rachel to work off some steam. And neither of them would allow the argument to become violent, especially in front of children. I do apologize for my wife. She's usually quite level-headed. She's simply…"

"Worried for the children," the Doctor interrupted. "I understand; she's just being a mum. And I'm sorry, but I've read all the books and you're not at all what I expected."

"Less greasy, you mean?" Severus drawled, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I suppose that as well, but more pleasant was what I was…" The Doctor trailed off, wishing Rose was there to stop him from saying things like that. "Sorry, that was a…bit…rude." If he sounded somewhat absentminded, or if the last few words came out a bit breathy, it was only because he'd just noticed that Rose had, in fact, shown up, and was wearing rather less than he'd ever seen her in before. His mouth went dry as he took in the sight, fixating on a certain part of her body which was heaving in a _highly _distracting manner.

"Sorry, what was I saying?" he asked, tearing his eyes away and meeting Snape's openly amused ones just seconds before Rose walked over to them.

She didn't even notice the effect she was having on the Doctor; she was too focused on checking him for injuries. "What happened? I heard the explosion; wanted to make sure you, everyone that is, _everyone_ was alright."

"We're all fine," the Doctor said about half an octave lower than he meant to. "And that is a very fetching costume." He didn't even realize he was saying it until it was too late. And he was staring at her chest again. Bugger. "Right, then," he said loudly, in an effectively commanding tone. "Sarah Jane have you seen K-9? He really should have been back by now. I'm just going to make sure he got clear in time."

"I _really_ hate mixed signals," Rose muttered as the Doctor turned and fled.

Snape snorted. "There was nothing mixed about that. _That_ was clearly 'I want you, but I'm terrified'. Now, if you'll excuse me, I believe I should collect my wife and get her home."

Rose screwed up her courage, which was actually fairly easy, as a large portion of her brain was working on what Snape had said about the Doctor. "What really happened with Dumbledore? Ami said, it's just, she said the last three books were largely fictional."

Snape stopped walking. After a moment he turned back to look at her, those black eyes searching, perhaps taking her measure. His gaze seemed to pierce her very soul; it made Rose feel exposed in a way that had nothing to do with her state of dress. Ultimately, he must have been satisfied with what he found, for at last he spoke. "That was not. He was dying; had known it for some time. He asked me to protect Draco from having to do it."

Snape turned his gaze to his wife then; his face and voice softened as he looked at her. "I don't think Rachel ever really forgave the old man for it."

"I'm so sorry," Rose replied, realizing with some surprise that she wished she had the chance to get to know the man before her.

Snape simply nodded curtly, without looking back, and then strode purposely toward his wife.

Feeling a bit spare, and suddenly aware that a lot of the schoolboys were ogling her, Rose headed back to Ami's flat, brooding over stupid, brilliant, emotionally closed-off Time Lords. Something was deeply wrong with the universe when Severus Snape, Severus _Snape_ of all people, was more emotionally available than the Doctor was.

Upon finding Venus and Mickey still lounging in the hot tub, Rose's sour mood spilled over a bit. "Weren't either of you even a bit concerned about the explosion?"

Mickey's eyes widened at her tone, but Venus just shrugged. "Ami told me everyone was fine, but you'd already taken off."

Mickey brightened at that. "It was really cool, Rose. Ami told 'er in her _head_. Makes the Doctor seem a bit less impressive, yeah?"

Rose didn't say a word, simply sent Mickey a glare that said, quite clearly, 'Say one more word and they'll never find the body.'

"So," Venus said airily, trying to lighten the atmosphere, "Mickey's been telling me about you and the Doctor, Sam Becketting around the universe."

"We…what?" Rose asked, genuinely confused.

Mickey started to laugh. "I said the same thing," he explained once he pulled himself together.

"Dude, I _know _I'm not the only person who watched Quantum Leap," Venus retorted, crossing her arms over her chest and sending a bit of a glare in Mickey's direction.

"Early 1990s television program about time travel, well a bit," the Doctor breezed as he strolled through the door, Ami just a step behind. "Not really. Interesting concept, though. Terrible science; it'd never work in a billion years. What were we talking about?"

Venus grinned, relieved that someone got pop culture references, even if it was a bit weird that the _alien _was the one who did. "You and Rose, Sam Becketting around the universe. You know, traveling through time, helping people, changing things for the better, yadda, yadda, yadda. And what are you guys doing back already? I thought you were gonna stay and feed BS to the cops."

"Yes, well, so did I," the Doctor replied after the few moments it took to sort through what Venus had said. "But then UNIT showed up and Sarah Jane suggested that we make ourselves scarce; said she'd deal with them."

"UNIT?" Rose asked.

"Stands for Unified Intelligence Taskforce. Well, now it does anyway; UN used to stand for United Nations. I worked with them a bit back in the 70s and 80s, back when Sarah Jane was traveling with me. It's their job to handle extraterrestrial threats."

"So where've they been? Haven't they noticed the last _several _alien threats?" Mickey asked incredulously.

"Yes, well, UNIT takes its orders from Geneva. By the time they've sorted through the red tape and received authorization to do much of anything, we've usually done their jobs for them. And that's more or less how it's always been." The Doctor turned suddenly to Venus, "And were you just comparing my life to a television show?"

"Sorta. Except that, well, Scott Bakula's hotter than you, and you're missing the lecherous sidekick, but other than that," Venus said with a shrug and a teasing grin.

"We used to have one of those," Rose replied wistfully. "I miss Captain Jack. And hey, I know who Scott Bakula is; no _way _is he hotter than the Doctor!"

Venus did not miss the jealousy that flashed briefly over the Doctor's features at the mention of 'Captain Jack' or the shock and pleasure that replaced it. She glanced to her left and was amused to observe that Mickey was enjoying the show as well.

However, the awkward silence that followed was, well, awkward, so Venus stood up. "Well, I think the hot tubbing is over. Time to get ready for the celebratory night out."

"What's that about, then? Pub, club, wha'?" Mickey asked, still sitting. His current vantage point was way too good to spoil by standing up.

"Yes, yes, and you can't forget the karaoke. There's a pub just a couple blocks away; food's good, atmosphere's comfy. And the club we'll hit is mine, mine in that I _own _it, well, co-own it. Anyway, karaoke's set up on the ground floor."

"Sounds good to me, s' long as you don't make me sing. I try not to subject anyone to that," Mickey said with a grin. "Wha' 'bout you, Rose? Up for it? Come on, you _know_ you love karaoke."

"Sure, I think I could do with a night out," Rose agreed absently, still embarrassed that she'd called the Doctor hot, well, not to his face, but near his face. And _now_ she really had to stop thinking about being near his face. She inhaled deeply, and then let it out slowly; it didn't help at all. She hoped that an evening of regular old fun just might help her blow off some steam about the Doctor.

"How about you, Ami?" Venus asked, already knowing the answer.

"Oh no, I think I'm disinclined to acquiesce to your request," Ami responded.

Venus chuckled. "You had to watch Pirates of the Caribbean with Jazz again last night, huh? You're in so much trouble. That Orlando thing she's got ain't fadin'."

Ami shrugged helplessly. "Could be worse. She could be obsessed with Paul Walker. At least Bloom's been in watchable movies."

"I concede your point," Venus agreed. "How 'bout you, Doc?"

"Oh, not for me, thanks. I think I'll keep Ami here company. We were sort of in the middle of a discussion."

Venus nodded absently; she'd been pretty sure the Doctor wasn't the, 'we saved the world, I say we party' type, but she'd wanted to watch Rose's reaction. She was having the hardest time figuring out their relationship. And after music and kicking ass, relationships were the things that she understood best. When she saw the odd mixture of relief and disappointment cross Rose's overly made-up features (and seriously, the girl needed a makeover in the worst possible way), Venus finally got it. It was simple even – they were just _stupid_.

The Doctor, well, his problem probably had something to do a comment Mickey's had made about the Doctor's age. Never said what his age was, just that he was older than he looked and had a much longer lifespan than humans did. And Rose seemed to be waiting for him to make a move, and wow did that just emphasize how young and inexperienced she was. So, the Doctor probably felt like a dirty old man, and Rose was unintentionally making it worse. And, for a stupid guy, he seemed just _crazy _smart, and her experience with that type of person told her that he was over-analyzing every little thing, and was probably already imagining his future without her in it, like it would somehow suck less, after she was gone, to brood about what he could have had if he hadn't been such a pussy.

Well, she hated to see decent people suffer from something as awful as unresolved sexual tension, and she loved having the chance to live up to her name. A slow, dangerous grin grew as Venus made plans. Watch out boys and girls, she mused, the Goddess of love is about to go to work.


End file.
